Machine for stacking biscuits and the like



Nov. 15, 1927. Y

J. H.'L. BOETTCHER momma FOR smcxme BISCUITS AND THE LIKE Filed June 23,1925 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR I 95% 04.2 M

ATTORNEYS Ndv. 15, 1927.

1,649,563 J. H. L. BOETTCHER MACHINE FOR STACKING BISCUITS AND THE LIKEFiled June 23, 1925 I 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR CL-MM ATTORNEYS PatentedNov. 15, 1927.

UNITED STATES 1,649,563 PATENT OFFICE.

W-MMW JAGOB HEINRICH LUD'WlllG BOIQTLLCHER. O1? ORANGE, HEW

anti-ear, nssicnon ro nn- VICES GQRPORATION OF NEW/V JERSEY, OF ORANGE,NEW JERSEY, A CORFORATION 0F NEXV JERSEY.

MAUI-11111313011 sraoirine niscuirs Ann 'rnn LIKE.

Application filed June 23, 1925. I Serial No. 39,054. j

This invention relates to a machine for feeding and stacking articlessuch, for in scending support for receiving the biscuits as they arestacked. q

Another object consists in providing such a machine which includessuccessively operating members for receiving the biscuits as they arestacked, each of said members serving as a means for ejecting the formedstack from the other member, during the course of the operation.

Another object consists in providing such a machinethat includes meansfor automatically interrupting the feed of the biscuits during the saidejecting period.

Another object consists in. providing such a machine in which themembers for receiving the biscuits as they are stacked are givenmovement in open endless angular paths, in performing the functions ofreceiving and ejectingthe biscuits. i

A further object consists in providing certain improvements in the form,construction and arrangement of the several parts whereby the abovenamed and other objects may effectively be obtained.

A practical embodiment of the invention is represented in theaccompanying drawings in which Fig. 1 represents a detail top plan View,partly broken away;

Fig. 2 represents a partly broken away;

Fig. 3 represents a detail section showing the clutch mechanism whichisbroken away from Fig. I; v p n Fig. 4 represents a detail side view.partly broken away, showing the biscuit feeding, stacking and ejectingmechanism, and the actuating-means therefor; n

Fig. 5 represents a detail section; partly broken away, taken intheplane ofthe line V-V of Fig. 2 looking in the direction of the arrows;

Fig. 6 represents a detail end elevation,

detail side view, partly broken away, showing the biscuit feeding,

stacking and ejecting mechanism, with parts a or the actuating meansremoved;

Fig. 7 represents a detail side view, partly broken away, with thestacking and ejecting mechanism in a different position from that shownin Fig. 6;

Fig. 8 represents a detail side view, partly broken away, with thestacking and ejecting mechanism shown in still another position;

Fig. .9 represents a detailsection, partly broken away. taken in theplane of the line IX-IX of Fig. 2, looking in the direction of thearrows.

The machine includes has a base 1 of skeleton formation, together with.two pairs of uprights marked 2 and 3.

A main drive shaft 4; isjournaled in bear ings 5-5 fast to a verticalmember "6 com posing part of the skeleton base 1. The

said shaft projects laterally beyond the frame of t-he machine, and oneend finds support in a standard 7. The said end has a pulley 8 fixedthereto in order to receive power from asuitable source, not shown.

The uprights 8 are adapted to support a plurality of chutes 9., whichare arranged side by side. nine being shown in the present instance.These chutes are calculated to receive the biscuits 10 from aconveyorbelt or other suitable feeding apparatus.

It will be observedthat the chutes 9 are slanted downwardly andthebiscuits are intended to be fed from them into receiving troughs 11, onetrough being arranged'in line wlth, and intended to cooperate with, eachchute; j

The biscuits are held in their chutes and properly fed therefrom by aseries of wheels 12 which are mounted on a shaft 13 that is journaled inbearings i k-14: formed in brackets15-15 that project upwardly from theuprights 3.

One of said whcelsl2 is mounted above each chute 9 and is arranged toproject into the chute far enough to engage the biscuits therein, asclearly shown in Fig. 5. These wheels are preferably composed of someyielding material, such as relatively soft rubber, and their peripheriesare also preferably serrated so as to provide a circum ferential setofyielding fingers calculated to i a framework that by restrain theirmovement or feed them according to the designed operation ofthe machine,without injury.

The shaft 13 that carries these feeding wheels is actuatedb3 means of asprocket 16 carried on the end thereof and connected by means of a chain17 with another sprocket 18 that is fast to the end of the shaftsopposite to that which carries the-pulley 8.

The feed of the hiscuilisis intended to be intermittent so that theremay be a pausein the feed during the period of time occupied in meetingeach complete stack, and thisi-ntermitteney in the feed is accomplishedby providing a slip clutch for securing the sprocket 16 in rotatableengagementwith the shaft 113. This clutch. is well shown in Fig. 3, andit will be seen that the sprocket 16 base sleeve 19 which carries aplurality of springeetuated shoesQO intended to frictionally engage theinner circumference of the drum 21that "isfast 'on'the shaft 13.

This clutch willcause the rotation of the sprocket 16 by the ohain 17 tonormally rotate the shaft 13 and thereby actuate the feed wheels 1-2,but meansis providedtlor interrupting this operation. which means 24*24onone of the uprights 3.

consists of a brake which has a shoe 22 adapted toenp'agre theontercircumference of theidrum 21. This shoe is carried on the upper end of arod 23 that slides in guides An expansion coil spring 25 is compressedbetween the lower guide fl land a shoulder 26 formed onthe rod 2330 asto normally-urge the rod downwardly andhold the shoe 22 away from thedrumBl. The lowerend of the rod 23 carries a roller 27 that rides on acant-28 fixed on the shaft l. The said cam has two high spots so thantwice during each revolution, the rod 23 is forced upwardly against thepower oftbe spring 25 so as to positively engagetheshoeQB Wllll l'llfidrum 2]; This prevents the drum from rotating and thus causes the clutchshoesQO to slipalong the inner circumference of the drum 21 so-that thecontinued rotation oftbe sprocket 16, (at this juncture, fails totransmit rotary mo tion to the shaft 13. i a it One of the importantfeatures of the invention relates to the means for receiving:

and ejecting the biscuits, which means ineludes a pairof members adapted.toeliave motion in endless angular paths, each one traversing a courseso as to make it, in effect, revolve about the other; each in turnreceiving the biscuits as they are stacked:

and each in turn ejecting the stacked biscuits from the other. i

These members are shown in front view in Fig. 2 and consist of a pair ofrightanguler arms 29, '30. The arm 29cm'ries a series.

in the present instance nine, of beads 81;.

each head-beihg-of such size, shape and location as to cooperate withone o 'the chutes Q and one of the receiving troughs-ll.

pressed, thereby raising same number of similar heads 352 for a similarpurpose.

Selecting armBO for this purpose. it will he observeddhat its lower endis pivoted at 335 between the ends of a bifurcated rod Ii -l that ishinged at 35 in the skeleton frame I. The said and fi l carries a roller3i) that travels upon othercircumference of a camv 37 fixed upon androtating with the shaft if The configuration of the cam 37 is sucbas tocause the roller 36 to be elevated and do and lowering the arm 30 withheads 32. i a -The movementof the said arm fall with beads 32 is furthercontrolled. It is mor molly urged in awforward direction by a retractilecoil spring 38 that is fixed to the bearing:

upon the front of the arm 30. The lower; end of the lever has a rollerel that rides in engagement with the edge of a cameo that rotates withthe shaft l, The configuration of the cam 45 is suchas to intermittentlyretract the arm 30 and also permit the arm 30 to be movedforwardly bythe spring 38, according to the design of thc apparatus.

The combined effect ofvthe cams, rollers, lever and spring operatingupon the arm fill is" such as to cause the heads 32 cali riml thereby tomove both upwardly and down wardly and to the right andqlcft in suchmanner as to traverse an open. an rular curb less path. In other words.the said beads move upwardly, "then l'otlie li then dowuwe rdly. then tothe right. at the end of which last movement the cj 'cle is coni'ileled. This cycleis continuouslyrepeated during the operation of themachine. a

As previously mentioned the arm thus the same construction, operationmecliauisriu movement. and function as the arm ill), so that it will notbe described nor will its connected parts be identified by differentmuncrals. f i In the operation of the machine, the heads 32 are movedinto the posit shown in dotted lines in Fig. The hi its [0 are being feddown through'the chute 9 by the wheelslil and the first biscuits fallupon lbo tops of the heads 32. During the continued feed of succeedingbiscuit" :be heads E353 are gradually moving downwardly under the idfluence of their actuating mechanism above described so that, as eachset of su ceedin r biscuits-is fed to thesaid heads 32 the lal lcr aremoved downwardly about the thickness Thearm 30 is likewise provided withthe a IOU of a biscuit until, at the time the said heads reach thelowermost point of their downward movement, the stacks of biscuits havebeen completely formed thereupon. It will be s en that, owing to. thisarrangement, each biscuit only falls a slight distance in passing fromits chute 9 on to its head 32, thereby obviating the danger of breakingthe hiscuits. The heads 32 are shown in their partly lowered position inFig. 7, and in their fully lowered position in Fig. 5. Just as the saidheads reach their lowest position, the heads 31 on the arm 29 reachtheir highest position on their upward stroke and move forwardly overthe tops of the heads 32, thereby moving the stacks of crackers off theheads 32 and ejecting the same into the troughs 1].. As the heads 31move forward in this operation the heads 32 begin moving backwardly.This condition of affairs is well shown in Fig. 8. Thecompletion of theejecting movement by the heads 3 brings them into the same position asis shown for the heads 32. in dotted lines, in Fig. 6, and the operationis now repeated, just before, except that, in this instance the biscuitsare stacked upon the heads 31 during their downward movement and, afterthe stacks have been completed and the heads 81 have reached the limitof their downward movement, the heads 32, which have now reached thelimit of their upward movement, advance I over the heads 31 and ejectthe stacks of biscuits as previously described.

The timing of the operation is such that, during the period that eitherset of heads is .cting the stack of biscuits from the other set ofheads, the brake shoe 22 is clamped against the clutch drum 21, therebypreventing the rotation of the feed wheels 12-, and thus causing aninterruption in the feed of the biscuits. Immediately the ejection ofthe stacked biscuits has been accomplished from one set of the heads 31or 32. the said brake is released and the biscuit feed proceeds.

In order to prevent the biscuits from sliding beyond the heads intendedto receive them, as they pass from the chutes 9, I provide a guard 46which is arranged transversely of the troughs 11.

The feed wheels 12 not only serve to feed the biscuits as abovedescribed; they also, by their yielding engagement, restrain the feed ofthe biscuits when the feeding movement is interrupted by the brake,mentioned.

It will be understood that various clmngcs may be resorted to in theform. construction and arrangement of the several parts withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope of my invention; and henceI do notintend to be limited to the details herein shown and de scribed, exceptas they may be included in the claims.

What I claim is:

1. A machine of the character described comprising, a. plurality ofbiscuit-carrying elements, means for depositing biscuits in stackedrelationship upon such elements, and means for moving each element so asto be loaded in turn with a stack of biscuits and, in turn, to eject thestacked biscuits from a loaded element.

2. A machine of the character described comprising, a plurality ofbiscuit-carrying elements, means for depositing biscuits in stackedrelationship upon such elements, and means for moving each said elementin an endless path about the other element for the purpose set forth.

3. A machine of the character described comprising, a biscuit feed,biscuit-carrying elements, means for moving the elements in sequence inan endless path partly in adjacency to the feed, the movement of theelements being so timed that after one has re ceived a load of biscuitsfrom the feed, the succeeding element, in approachingits receivingposition, ejects said load.

l. A machine of the character described comprising, a plurality ofbiscuit-carrying elements, means for depositing biscuits in stackedrelationship upon such elements, and cam actuated mechanism for movingeach element so as to be loaded in turn with a stack f biscuits and, inturn, to eject the stacked biscuits from a loaded element.

5. A machine of the character described comprising, a plurality ofbiscuit-carrying elements, means for depositing biscuits in stackedrelationship upon such elements,

and cam actuated mechanism for moving each said element in an endlesspath about the other element for the purpose set forth.

6. In a machine of the character described, a rotary biscuit feedingdevice, said device having a yielding serrated periphery.

7. A machine of the character described comprising, biscuit feedingmeans, means for receiving the biscuits to be stacked, means forejecting the stacked biscuits, means for interrupting the feed duringthe period of ejection, and a main drive shaft and cams on said shaftfor actuating the receiving, ejecting and interrupting means.

8. In a machine of the character described, rotary biscuit feedingmeans, mechanism for actuating said means, and a brake for restrainingsaid mechanism to interrupt the feeding, said brake including a pushrod, :1. shoev at the upper end of said rod, and rod actuating meansadjacent its lower end.

9. In amachine of the character described, rotary biscuit feeding means,mechanism for actuating said means, a slip clutch in said mechanism, abrake for causing said clutch to slip to interrupt the feed, a maindrive shaft, and means on said shaft for operating said mechanism andsaid brake,

10. A machine 9f the charaeter described comprlslng, biscuit igeedlngmeans, means for receiving the biscuits to be stacked,

means, and a driving connection between said. rotary shafts, saiddriving connection including a slip clutch.

In testimony, that I claim the foregoing as my invention, I have signedmy name this 22nd day of June, 1925. a

JACOB HEINRICH LUDWIG BQETTCHER.

